Opening his eyes, Han Fei saw the clock point at midnight. Han Fei crawled up from the ground and studied the dark living room. “As moldy and dark as this place is, after you stay here long enough, it does feel like home.” The sound of static drifted into his ears. The television had been mysteriously switched on. The image slowly cleared on the grainy screen. The door of the innermost bedroom was opened. A child walked out with his head lowered. As if hypnotized, he dragged his broken body to the living room and plopped himself down on the sofa.
‘Chui Tianchi?’ The boy’s expression kept changing. Sometimes it was ghastly, other times it was innocent. It was like two forces were fighting within him. Han Fei was cautious to not get too close. The boy did not come after Han Fei either. Perhaps the boy had gotten used to Han Fei’s presence, or perhaps it was some other reason, in any case, Chui Tianchi completely ignored Han Fei.
‘Today is the day the victims will gather to watch television again?’ Han Fei knew the victims watched the television show not for the sake of entertainment, this was the only link back to their past and the only way they could retain their last shred of humanity. That was what Han Fei gathered after spending time with his roommates. The fate of the victims was tragic. They had been resisting the monster within them. Should they lose their sense of self, they would be glued together permanently and terrorize this hellish world as a brainless monster.
‘I hope they’ll be able to revert to their old selves once the case is solved.’ The victims streamed out from the bedroom and came to gather before the television. Han Fei pulled over a chair and sat to the side. He watched his roommates with concern. The whole scene was strangely harmonious, they looked like a family. Han Fei sat with them until 3 am. He turned to look into the innermost bedroom. ‘Wei Youfu is the most unique of all the victims. He retains the most memory. He should be my breakthrough to reach the other victims.’
Now was a rare opportunity. The victims filed out into the living room based on their time of death. Wei Youfu died at 3.04 am so he was still inside the bedroom. Without the hindrance of the other victims, Han Fei believed he could gain more information from Wei Youfu. With that in mind, Han Fei slipped into the innermost bedroom. He found Wei Youfu and Gu Hwa standing by the wall. Their pale skins were crawling with black veins. Their expressions suggested they were at the brink of madness.
“Youfu?” Han Fei called out softly. Hearing his name, Wei Youfu’s pupils bounced crazily in his eyes. Veins popped in his eyes as they bulged forward. At that moment, Han Fei feared for his own safety. Han Fei did not dare to push the man further. He slowly retreated out from the room. When he was at the door, he caught something at the corner of his eyes. There was a pile of laundry stuffed behind the door. One of the clothes stood out to him because it was worn by his 6th floor neighbour when he came to visit. The neighbour himself had disappeared but his clothes remained. Han Fei swiped the clothes and sneaked away. ‘I still can’t communicate with them normally.’
Leaving his roommates to their peace, Han Fei placed the clothes of his former 6th floor neighbour on the dining table. He spread it open to examine it further. He was curious if anything was left behind inside the pockets. His fingers just touched something when the robotic voice announced in his mind. “Notification for Player 0000! You have discovered Grade G Blood Red Item—Human Cocoon.
“Human Cocoon (Blood Red Item): The cocoon of some kind of insect.”
Han Fei opened his palm. A greyish-yellow stone about the size of one’s thumb sat in the middle. It was tough to the touch and faded blood capillaries covered its surface. ‘This is a cocoon? But if the name is Human Cocoon, how is a human a kind of insect?’ He stored the item in his inventory before he continued to search the other pockets. ‘Looting is a crucial part of any game. How could I have forgotten about that?! Right... I was too busy running for my life.’ After turning all the pockets inside out, Han Fei found nothing else other than the Human Cocoon. ‘A crazed murderer only drops this one unknown cocoon after his death? This game is quite stingy.’ Han Fei pulled out the cocoon from his inventory. No matter how he studied it, the thing looked nothing more than an ordinary pebble with unique striations.
‘Even though I am clueless about its use, this thing should be very important to my former 6th floor neighbour. He shared the floor with the rest of the non-locals, perhaps they’d recognize its value as well. Hmm, to unlock the hidden profession, I have to eliminate 10 non-locals before I reach level 10.’ A plan slowly formed in Han Fei’s mind. ‘Since its original owner is already dead, as a kind citizen, I should return it to his friends. Perhaps I should call the big sister on the 5th floor to come along while I do them this favor.’
The plan rooted in Han Fei’s mind. He toyed with the cocoon while he came up with the details of his plan. Suddenly he felt a prick of pain from his palm. Studying the cocoon closer, he noticed there was a barely noticeable spine at the bottom of the cocoon. The spine punctured his skin and was sucking his blood. ‘This thing feeds on blood?’ Han Fei was about to fling the disgusting thing away when he realized the color of the capillaries on the cocoon surface deepened after it imbibed Han Fei’s blood. ‘This why I hate bugs. I should return this to its lawful owner as soon as possible.’
Storing the cocoon back in his inventory, Han Fei walked to the anti-theft door carrying his former neighbour’s clothes. ‘I still haven’t completed the mission that required me to explore the 5th floor. I might as well attempt to finish it while I go and visit Xu Qin.”
After his unexpected trigger of the hidden mission, the corridor left a deep emotional scar on Han Fei. He now would observe the corridor for a long time before he stepped out the door. ‘It’s very quiet. There shouldn’t be anyone around.’
Pushing the door silently open, Han Fei sidled up the stairs while sticking to the wall. Han Fei felt assaulted by an oppressive feeling. It permeated the whole apartment building. It appeared whenever he left Room 1044.
Han Fei was lucky this time because he did not trigger any hidden mission. He successfully reached the landing between 4th and 5th floor. The door to Room 1051 was still open, the dark room yawned like a monster’s jaw.
‘The big sister sure is something else to have turned a room into her pet.’
Han Fei slunk over to the door of Room 1052. He tapped on it lightly. “Big Sister, are you home? I’m your neighbour from downstairs.”
He waited for a long time but the door did not open. However, the sound of bone sawing and meat slicing did come from Room 1054. Standing alone in the dark corridor, listening to that horrid butchery, Han Fei’s heart twitched. He waited for another 10 minutes before the door to Room 1054 suddenly opened. Xu Qin walked out with a black plastic bag. Her red jacket was brighter than Han Fei remembered. The morbid passion was still dimming in her eyes.
“Big sister, I’ve prepared another small present for you.”
Xu Qin was not surprised to see Han Fei. Her red pupils regarded Han Fei’s face before she stepped forward. “Do you know the implications when a boy keeps sending a woman gifts?”
Xu Qin had leaned in far too close for Han Fei’s comfort to study the Human Cocoon he just retrieved from his inventory. He answered in a fluster. “What, what do you mean?”
The blood-painted lips hooked into a soul-wrenching smile. Xu Qin did not answer. She tossed the black bag into Room 1051 and then used her bloody hands to open the door to Room 1052. “Why don’t you come in?”
